


Treat Her Right

by Dance_Elle_Dance



Category: Royal Pains
Genre: Confrontations, Drama, Early Series, F/M, Protective Evan, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-07
Updated: 2015-08-07
Packaged: 2018-04-13 10:26:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4518327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dance_Elle_Dance/pseuds/Dance_Elle_Dance
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Listen, I don't know much about these arranged marriages, but…" Evan trailed off, looking at his feet. "Treat her right. She deserves that much." (Originally posted on 8/6/09.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Treat Her Right

**Author's Note:**

> Continuing the re-posts. Another Evan/Divya. Please enjoy!

Evan walked down the boardwalk that led to the beach, his hands in his pockets and a wondering look in his eyes.

He had just booked another client for Hank, and was now looking for the most infuriating and desirable woman he had ever met. He had gotten another call as soon as Hank had left, and he had been trying over and over to get into contact with Divya Katdare, but to no avail. If he had any medical training at all, he would go over to the patient's house himself, but he didn't, and he really didn't feel like killing anybody - let alone losing a good paycheck.

Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair, staring out at the beach when he spotted her.

"Thank God," Evan said to himself, fighting a smile that threatened to spread across his face at the mere sight of her. Even at this distance, he could tell it was her. He walked forward, his feet sinking into the sand. He decided to kick off his sandals by the boardwalk, leaving them among the other shoes that had been discarded, and walked forward, feeling the hot sand between his toes.

As he got closer, he saw Divya up to her ankles in the salty water. A royal blue sundress clung to her curves, stopping just above her knees. The material was tight around her bust, but flowed loosely around her legs. Her back was to him, and her fingers were intertwined with each other as she stared across the vast expanse of ocean in front of her. Her hair was pulled back into a low, loose tail and the breeze around her picked up, blowing the dark strands around her neck and back, just as it blew the soft fabric of her dress to the side.

Evan found himself stopping, his feet unwilling to move anymore, and watching the sight of her. The water sloshed up against her ankles, and she moved forward until it was at her knees. Some of the water sloshed up higher than she expected and it soaked the hem of her dress. He heard her squeak slightly, but she didn't back up. She looked as if she were enjoying herself.

"Divya," an unfamiliar voice spoke up. Evan turned his head to the sound to see a man sitting on the sand with his legs spread out in front of him. He looked very distinguished, and Evan thought it odd for him to be on the beach. "You're ruining your dress, sweetheart."

Divya turned to face him, and for the first time in the minutes that he had been watching her moment of peacefulness, he saw her face. "Raj, I have plenty of dresses like these. Don't worry about that." She gave him a smile.

"But that one is my favorite," the man named Raj said, his voice soft with compassion.

Evan's heart stopped at the sound of tenderness in the tone he used with her. Was this…her _fiancée_?

Divya laughed a bit before her dark eyes finally landed on Evan, who was now just a few feet from the couple. "Evan?" she called, clearly confused.

He shook his head, as if he had been in a trance that he had just woken up from. "Hey, Divs," he greeted. Raj turned to look at him, but Evan kept his gaze solely on the dark haired woman across from him. "Have you seen Jaws? You're setting yourself up for disaster."

Even far away as she was, he could see her roll her eyes as she approached him, the dry sand she walked on collecting onto her wet feet. "Jaws didn't attack people in water that shallow, Evan," she reprimanded playfully.

"Shark Week on Discovery Channel. Can't help but be a little cautious." Evan shrugged boyishly, his eyes closed and a smile playing on his lips. He enjoyed these playful little conversations with her too much sometimes.

"Discovery Channel, now?" Divya said, a genuine smile now on her lips. "And I never knew you would enjoy some intelligent television."

"One can only take so much of VH1 reality shows, after all."

Divya laughed at that, throwing her head back as she placed her hands on her hips. The sound of it was so free and airy that it made Evan smile back as well. He looked at her and relished the sound - it was so rare nowadays.

"Divya? Who is this?" Raj rose from his seat on the sand and brushed off his bottom lightly before walking over to her.

Evan quirked a brow at him as he placed his hands on her shoulders and peered over her head at him. Divya turned her head slightly and shrugged out of his grasp gently, as if to not upset him. She stood to the side, motioning toward Evan, her dark eyes only on him. "Evan, this…this is…Raj," she said, her voice nervous and unsure. "Raj, this is - "

"Evan Lawson, CFO of HankMed," he cut her off in his response, his gaze challenging and the tone of his voice surprising the woman across from him.

Divya shot him a look. "Is there anything you wanted?"

Evan shook his head slightly. "Uh, yeah. There's this guy." He reached into his pocked for his phone and pressed some numbers. "Mark Hubert. He said he's having flu-like symptoms and needs some treatment. Hank left for Newparts Newberg a while ago for something, which is why he's busy and can't go. I was wondering if you could…"

"On it." Divya jogged to where Raj was sitting just a while ago and grabbed her purse. She took out her phone and looked at Evan expectantly. "Send me the directions to the house?"

"Of course," Evan replied with a lazy grin, and he pushed a few more buttons on his phone. There was a few seconds of silence and then Divya's phone buzzed in her hands. She looked at Evan with determined eyes and then smiled.

"Thanks," she said, walking off in the direction of the boardwalk. But before she could get anywhere, Raj grasped her arm. "What is it?"

Evan watched curiously as this situation unfolded.

"You don't even say goodbye?" Raj said, his eyes soft and tender as they met her own.

"Oh, right, sorry," Divya looked flustered, her eyes moving down to stare at the sand below her. "I was planning on being right back. So just wait for me, Raj."

She looked like she was about to leave, but Raj stopped her from taking one more step by pressing his lips lightly, but passionately, against hers. She responded ever-so-slightly, not even closing her eyes, though he closed his.

Evan felt his heart jolt and then stutter to a stop, sinking the hope he didn't even know he had.

They pulled away after only a few seconds, but it seemed like hours. The first thing Divya did was stare at Evan, wide-eyed like a deer caught in the headlights. She looked back at Raj after a while of gazing at Evan guiltily and then smiled at him. She then was off to help the newest patient of HankMed.

Evan turned as she brushed brusquely past him, her shoulder touching his ever-so-lightly, but that light touch resonated through his body, giving him chills with the contact. He inhaled shakily, his eyes following her frame as she walked, going to the boardwalk and grabbing a pair of sandals that had been deposited beside the spot where the wood met the sandy beach. Her movements were graceful and lithe, and his heart ached with witnessing it, oddly enough.

He watched her as she walked up the wooden walkway and onto the sidewalk, getting into her car which was parked a ways away. His teeth found his lip and he bit down as if that could quell the pain that was welling inside him.

He knew that Divya had a fiancée. Sure, it surprised him at first that it was like that - an arranged marriage and all, with someone he knew. He had heard all about them on television and in books and such, but he had never really met a person involved with one until he found out about Divya's situation. He knew, but he really didn't expect to be confronted with said fiancée so quickly.

And here it was, like a slap in the face, right in front of him, right when he'd begun to hope that the smidgen of chemistry he felt for the raven haired beauty was starting to grow at an unprecedented rate. He thought she felt that way as well, but…

But maybe she did. Maybe she did, because if he knew anything about anything, that kiss they had just shared…it _wasn't_ between a couple in love. Rather, two friends kissing. Or even, if he were to push it, brother and sister kissing. He felt nausea sweep over him, twisting his stomach around like a pretzel as the kiss replayed in his mind.

A grunt of frustration sounded in his throat, subtly, but there nonetheless.

"Evan, is it?"

Evan turned at the sound of the fiancée's voice. It was prim and proper and educated and, despite his seemingly endless supply of self confidence, he couldn't help but feel like he was inferior as the dulcet tones floated through the air to meet his ears.

"Yeah," he said, his voice rough with emotion. "That's my name."

Raj stepped forward, eyeing the Lawson brother with a curious gaze. "Do you fancy her?"

Evan took a step back, his feet stirring up the powdery sand beneath them. "Wh-What?"

He was clearly taken off guard by the blunt question. Was it that obvious that he had feelings for Divya? He gulped and gathered himself. "Uh, no," he replied in his most offhand voice, though it wavered slightly. "Not at all. She's just my… _co-worker_."

He looked at Raj, steeling himself for the next question that was aimed at his interaction with Divya, his eyes focused but nonchalant at the same time.

"Ah…" was the only thing Raj said in reply, his eyes focusing on the brown haired man in front of him.

Evan looked at him, unsure as to whether he believed him or not. If he were Raj, he wouldn't have been so naïve to accept that answer. Maybe he wasn't being naïve, though, maybe he was just being civil. He seemed like a polite enough man, a… _good_ man, though it pained Evan to admit that to himself. He sure as hell wasn't going to admit it aloud, though.

Raj only stared at him, his eyes seeming to bore into Evan, trying to read his motives, his feelings. Evan only stared back at him, keeping his gaze casual, despite the war of torrid emotions waging within him.

"I know she didn't tell you when she was here, but," Raj ventured after a moment of silence, "we're engaged to be married."

_Against her own will,_ Evan thought crassly, his eyes narrowing only marginally, otherwise his poker face was kept intact. Instead of voicing that, he said, "Of course."

Raj quirked a brow, looking at him quizzically with dark eyes, "What?"

"She told me, though it was… _inadvertent_ on her part," Evan said casually, shrugging his shoulders. "Congrats." He continued shortly, and if his strange reaction to his question before didn't give him away, then the resentment in his tone as he said that single word was enough to prove him guilty.

"Thank you." Obviously, Raj didn't notice the sarcastic tone.

_That's a difference between him and Divs,_ Evan thought, twisting his hands together slightly in front of him. He looked down for a moment before he gazed back up at the man that was taking Divya away, and their eyes met. 

There was so much that he wanted to say to this handsome man who had been set up with Divya. How he thought it was wrong that they were "strategically" arranged to be married, when you should be married out of love, not to gain anything - who would've thought Evan would be a romantic at heart? - and how Divya was an amazing woman and he didn't know how damn _lucky_ he was to be with her. 

Instead, he settled for a simple statement, one that got his point across without being, he thought, too obvious about his feelings. 

"Listen, I don't know much about these arranged marriages, but…" Evan trailed off, looking at his feet. "Treat her right. She deserves that much." 

And he looked up, his eyes the picture of intensity, and met his gaze with the man across from him. 

Raj appeared taken aback at his statement, his wide, doe-like stare the very picture of shock and wonderment. He looked at Evan as if he had said words in another language. His hand moved to run rather ungracefully throughout his ink-black hair. He then returned his gaze with one of an equal intensity. " _Of course,_ " he said passionately, unwavering. 

Evan looked at him, not breaking his gaze either, and the two just stared at one another, resolute, as the waves crashed on the beach beyond them. 

"That's all I needed to hear," Evan said protectively, and inside he felt a piece of him breaking, shattering. 

Raj nodded. "I treat Divya with the utmost respect and care." 

"And _love_?" Evan put extra emphasis on the word, fiercely gazing at the husband-to-be. 

It was silent for a moment as Raj contemplated that, his handsome features contorting slightly, before he said, "Yes." 

Evan's eyes narrowed marginally, and his heart started beating faster within his chest. He found himself giving Raj the same answer he had provided him earlier, "Ah." 

Raj nodded, as if wishing to be done with the conversation, but then, his mouth betrayed him, breaking the silence once more, "You care for her." 

It was more a statement than a question, and the magnitude and truthfulness of it shot through Evan. He wasn't fooling anyone, obviously. 

His lips quirked into a playful half-smile and he replied, again using Raj's own words, " _Of course_." 

Again, silence overtook them. Evan could hear the cawing of seagulls on the horizon and the slapping of joggers as they ran down the coastline, as well as the waves, ever-present in the background. 

"And, I just have to say," Evan said, knowing that he had to at least get this out before he left, "if you ever hurt her…I _will_ know about it, and trust me, I will come talk to you about it." The smile was still on his face as he watched Raj squirm slightly. "I don't tolerate anyone hurting my… _co-workers_." 

Raj looked stunned, his eyes wide and shocked and pained as he looked at the wiry man in front of him. 

"Nice meetin' you, Raj," Evan said ruefully as he turned on a bare heel and walked back to the boardwalk. 

"Yes…the same to you, Evan." His voice was shell-shocked, as if Evan's words were still sinking in. 

The wind whipped up around the Lawson brother, blowing his clothes around his lanky frame and making him wrap his thin arms around his body as he walked forward to the boardwalk, intent on getting home as soon as he could. 

He grabbed his shoes and slipped them on, not caring that his feet were caked with sand, not even noticing the vague outline of a blonde checking him out. He cared nothing for them anymore. Only her. 

It was always _her._

_Always Divya._


End file.
